Dynamic Transitions in Wular Lake’s Land Use and Land Cover: Analyzing the Role of Urban Development and Agricultural Activities

Wular Lake is one of the largest freshwater lakes in Asia and is essential to the region’s ecological and socio-economic structure. However, due to a number of natural and anthropogenic factors, the lake and the lands around it have been experiencing major spatio-temporal changes. This study makes use of geospatial techniques to look into and evaluate the dynamic changes that have occurred in the Wular Lake region during the last twenty-seven years. In order to examine changes in land cover, land use, and water levels, the research integrates a large dataset of remotely sensed satellite photos, field observations, and geographic information system (GIS) technologies. The attempt is to identify the patterns and trends of land use land cover using time-series analysis, geospatial techniques, and interpolation. This research shows that a number of complicated and interrelated factors, including urbanization, agricultural development, climate change, and hydrological changes, are altering the Wular Lake region. However, urbanization and agriculture are the most prominent factors in the land use and land cover changes around the Wular Lake. The study also pinpoints locations that could be particularly sensitive to land-use change and degradation, providing information about the most vulnerable regions. The regions that have experienced drastic changes are west and east regions in terms of increase in built up area, south eastern region in terms of increase in agricultural area. The cumulative impact of increase in built up and agricultural area has led to shrinkage of the Wular Lake which in turn has created a space for swampy land in the central part of it. This study advances knowledge of the changing landscape near Wular Lake which offers crucial data for local communities and policymakers to make well-informed choices regarding conservation and sustainable land management.